1. Field
This invention is in the field of non-prescription topical compositions for treatment of allergenic effects such as itching, pain, and swelling resulting from insect stings and bites and areas of skin contact with noxious plants.
2. State of the Art
There are numerous preparations presently available to provide relief from the allergenic effects of insect stings and bites or for relief from the effects of contact of the skin with noxious plants. Most of these preparations are effective only to a degree and merely tend to anesthetize the site of the affected area. There is nothing that tends to draw the actual material causing the allergenic reaction from the site.
It is said that the Indians in Central America used arrowroot (a starch taken from the root of a plant) in the treatment of poison arrow wounds and that that is how it received its name. Although arrowroot is presently used as a starch in cooking, it appears to have no significant medicinal uses.